FAA Demotes Mexico's Air Safety Rating

On Friday, the FAA downgraded Mexico's aviation safety rating over the country's safety oversight, according to the Associated Press.

The downgrade doesn't affect air travel between the U.S. and Mexico, but it does prevent Mexican airlines such as AeroMexico from expanding its service to the U.S.

Mexican airlines will not be allowed to bring passengers into and out of the U.S. in conjunction with U.S. airlines, also called code-sharing agreements. Delta, for instance, has code-sharing agreements with AeroMexico while American Airlines has a deal with Mexicana.

Kent Landers, Delta's spokesman, said that the airline will not co-operate with the roughly 140 flights that they share with AeroMexico.

"Our customers are still permitted to travel on AeroMexico, but must be rebooked with an AeroMexico flight number to do so," Landers said in a statement. That means that people who bought tickets on an AeroMexico flight with a Delta flight number will have to be re-booked.

Meanwhile, Mexico's Communications and Transport Department said in a statement that the reduction was due "exclusively to administrative and organizational matters" and not to flight safety.

The FAA countered: "While Mexico has been responsive to the FAA's findings and has made significant improvements in recent months, it was unable to fully comply with all of the international safety standards."